~★~♥~♥~★~ El Morno! ♥~★~★~♥ ~
May 3, 2012

★~ Today’s Quote:  “Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.” ~Albert Einstein

★~ Lumpy Rug Day:

Rugs are intended to be smooth and inviting, encouraging you to stretch out and watch television, play a board game, or do a little yoga. So, today is not about celebrating your lumpy rug but encouraging you to stop stepping over the lumps and to smooth them out. If you are a brave soul, perhaps it’s time to look underneath and see what’s causing the lump? Or maybe you’re afraid to find out. Fair enough.  Just roll up the rug and replace it. Smooth or replace–today is the day to de-lump your rugs.

★~ Two Different Colored Shoes Day:

For 364 days a year, most people wear matching footwear, but today is your excuse to step outside the box.

Dr. Arlene Kaiser created National Two Different Colored Shoes Day to recognize and celebrate human diversity. According to Dr. Kaiser, the simple act of wearing two different colored shoes proclaims your individuality. By taking this “positive risk,” you can demonstrate your willingness to be different and show your appreciation for the unique people in your life.

Wearing two different colored shoes can be as simple as wearing a black shoe and a brown shoe, or as outrageous as wearing a flip-flop and a boot. However you decide to express yourself today, do so with flair!

★~ Paranormal Day:

Paranormal simply describes anything that is beyond or contrary to what is deemed scientifically possible. That covers a lot of possibilities, doesn’t it? You could have a séance (do be careful and remember my Odd commenter Mrs. Brennan), pull out the Ouija board, or watch Poltergeist, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, or Stargate. The possibilities are limitless.

★~ Orange Juice Day:

I am not sure who the heck makes up these food holidays but some days just give Emily (my food partner) and I fits. For example, the website we use for the food of the day — we call it “old ugly yellow” because it truly is a homely, poorly-designed website — lists raspberry tarts as the food of the day. I happen to know that Raspberry Tart Day is on August 11, which is when we celebrated it last year, and sure enough when I Google “Raspberry Tart Day,” the most common day to celebrate is August 11. I scroll to August 11 on the old ugly yellow and Raspberry Tart Day is listed again. What to do, what to do? I take a peek at May 4 and see we have a choice of celebrating Orange Juice Day or Homebrew Day. Now, I ask you, in El Morno’s name, why wasn’t orange juice listed on May 2^nd, which was scurvy awareness day, instead of chocolate truffles? An executive decision needed to made, so we’re celebrating Orange Juice Day today, Homebrew Day tomorrow, and raspberry tarts in August. We’re sorry for any angst this might cause you.

★~ Today in History:

♥~1939 – Belly up to the bar for this one. Beer Barrel Polka, one of the standards of American music, was recorded by The Andrews Sisters for Decca Records. Patti, Maxine and LaVerne turned this song into a giant hit.

♥~ 1971- National Public Radio, the U.S. national, non-commercial radio network, was born. NPR’s most popular shows also include: Talk of the Nation, fascinating and thought-provoking discussions on the day’s issues and what’s behind the headlines; NPR’s Performance Today, a daily portrait of what’s happening in the world of classical music; and Car Talk, starring America’s funniest auto mechanics, the M.I.T. educated grease monkeys, Tom and Ray Magliozzi. Today, NPR’s satellite-based radio network of almost 600 member stations broadcasts NPR-produced or acquired programs to 13-million listeners in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam.

♥~ 1973 – Chicago’s Sears Tower was topped out. It was the world’s tallest building at the time –108-story, 1451-feet.

♥~ 1988 – The White House acknowledged that first lady Nancy Reagan had used astrological advice to help schedule her husband’s activities. The unflattering revelations were included in an about-to-be published memoir by former chief-of-staff Donald Regan

♥~ 2006 – Sotheby’s auction house sold Dora Maar au Chat, a painting by Pablo Picasso, for $95.2 million, the second highest amount paid (to that time) for a painting at auction.

♥~ 1986 – Horse racing legend Bill Shoemaker became the oldest jockey to win the the Kentucky Derby. ‘The Shoe’ was atop Ferdinand for the win. Shoemaker was 54 years old. It had been 32 years since Shoemaker’s first Derby victory back in 1955.

★~Born Today:

♥~ 1898 – Golda Meir first woman ambassador, minister, Prime Minister of Israel [1969-1974]; one of only two women to sign the Declaration of Independence of the State of Israel; was given Israel’s first passport; died Dec 8, 1978

♥~ 1919 – Pete Seeger Rock and Roll Hall of Fame musician: banjo, guitar, mandolin; singer: groups: groups: Almanac Singers, Weavers; solo: Little Boxes; songwriter: Where Have All the Flowers Gone?, Turn, Turn, Turn, co-wrote: If I Had a Hammer; social, civil and political activist

♥~ 1933 – James Brown The Godfather of Soul: singer: Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag, Please, Please, Please, I Got You (I Feel Good), It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World, Living in America; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer [1986]; died Dec 25, 2006

♥~ 1950 – Mary Hopkin singer: Those Were the Days, Goodbye, Temma Harbour, If You Love Me

♥~ 1975 – Christina Hendricks Mad Men, Kevin Hill, Beggars and Choosers, Life, South of Pico, Hunger Point, Sorority

★~ Did You Know:

♥~The most celebrated modern-day medium is the Brazilian Carlos Mirabelli, who has produced full-form materializations of dead relatives who could be spoken with and even touched. He has achieved this in full light and in test conditions, tied up in a sealed room; his exploits have been attested to by scores of prominent Brazilians and there has been no implication of fraud.

♥~In 1898 the medium Morgan Robertson published the novel Futility which featured a new monster liner called the Titan, the largest ever built. It was designed to be unsinkable with 19 watertight compartments yet it sank after hitting an iceberg on its first Atlantic crossing. The Titanic sank 14 years later.

♥~Hunter David Leslie was told by a Zulu diviner exactly what had happened to all eight of his native hunters who were scattered over 200 miles: one had been killed by elephants, one had died of fever, one had killed four elephants and so on. ‘To my utter amazement it turned out correct in every particular.’

♥~The most celebrated example of clairvoyance was that by Emmanuel Swedenborg, on 19 July 1759, who described in vivid detail to a reception full of local notables in Goteborg the progress of a disastrous fire which was sweeping through Stockholm, 300 miles away. At six he told them the fire had just broken out; at eight he told them it had been extinguished only three doors from his home. Two days later a messenger from Stockholm confirmed every detail.

♥~ In 1967 a lawyer’s office in the German town of Rosenheim became famous for its poltergeist effects: lights exploded as fluorescent tubes twisted in their sockets; the phone system went haywire. Investigators, including police and two physicists, then filmed plates jumping off the wall, pictures turning on their hooks and filing cabinets moving by themselves. A 19-year-old typist was found to be the focus: when she was removed the effects ceased.

♥~ The most celebrated levitator in history was St Joseph of Copertino, a dimwitted monk who would soar into the air whenever he felt religious ecstasy. He had no control over his ‘flights’, which could last for minutes and were attested to by scores of witnesses from the Pope downwards.

Thinking about Paranormal Day, Cole is going to be in New Orleans over the anniversary of Joe’s death and oddly enough he asked me last night if he could take some of his dad’s ashes with him to New Orleans. I said sure, thinking what a sweet idea that was, and then he mentioned the name of a classmate that he thought it would freak out. Oh well. It’s not such sweet gesture any more, but I’m pretty sure Joe would be amused and I know having a few of his ashes sprinkled on Bourbon Street will please him. We’re also meeting with a woman in a week who has the ability to communicate with those that have gone on to the great beyond. I like introducing Cole to a world beyond the explainable, especially now that he’s entered the age of skepticism. He is surprisingly open and relaxed, and I think we both benefit from these kinds of experiences. I’ll let you know how it goes.

What are your plans for today? Will you match your shoes or go for the unmatched look? Visit with me if you have a Morno moment … Odd Loves Company.